The 49th-day memorial (shijūkunichi) marks the end of the 49-day mourning period (kichū), not the end of the full mourning year (mochū, often through the first anniversary). It is the service families book first. Two calendars that disagree by a day are usually using different start days: Kanto treats the date of death as day 1; Kansai treats the day before as day 1. The gap is always one day, but that day can split Friday from Saturday and move the weekend you bring the service forward to. Annual memorials, by contrast, keep the same month and day as the date of death, so they do not shift.
The formula: Kanto +48 days, Kansai +47
For a “day-N” kichu memorial, the date depends on where you start counting:
- Kanto (date of death = day 1): day N is N−1 days after the date of death. The 49th day is 48 days later.
- Kansai (the day before = day 1): day N is N−2 days after. The 49th day is 47 days later.
The seventh-day memorial is then 6 days later in Kanto and 5 in Kansai. The region names are a guide; follow the family temple. The Memorial Service Date Calculator switches Kanto and Kansai and lists the previous weekend. Use the Date Calculator to check a span of days, and Japanese Public Holidays if relatives are travelling. Everything runs in the browser; the date of death is not sent to a server.
The same dates of death, both countings
Kanto = date of death as day 1 (+48). Kansai = the day before as day 1 (+47).
| Date of death | Kanto (+48) | Kansai (+47) | Weekend gap? |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-01-15 (Thu) | 2026-03-04 (Wed) | 2026-03-03 (Tue) | Both weekdays |
| 2026-03-01 (Sun) | 2026-04-18 (Sat) | 2026-04-17 (Fri) | Kanto Saturday, Kansai Friday |
| 2024-02-29 (Thu) | 2024-04-17 (Wed) | 2024-04-16 (Tue) | Both weekdays (leap-day add) |
| 2026-12-20 (Sun) | 2027-02-06 (Sat) | 2027-02-05 (Fri) | Kanto Saturday, Kansai Friday |
When the date of death is a Sunday, Kanto’s 49th day is Saturday and Kansai’s is Friday. Families often bring a weekday service forward to the previous weekend; confirm with the family temple. Kanto already sits on Saturday (no shift) and Kansai jumps to the weekend before that Friday. The gap is not one day. For 1 March 2026 (Sun), Kanto is 18 April (Sat) and Kansai is 17 April (Fri); Kansai’s weekend is 11–12 April. For 15 January 2026 (Thu), Kanto’s 4 March (Wed) has the previous weekend on 28 February (Sat) and 1 March (Sun).
Annual memorials do not shift by that one day
The first memorial (isshūki) and third memorial (sankaiki) are not a running day count. They fall on the same month and day as the date of death. Changing the 49-day start does not move them. Because the date of death counts as the first “kai”, the third memorial is two full years later (the year after the first memorial).
| Date of death | 1st memorial (same date, +1 year) | 3rd memorial (same date, +2 years) | Kanto / Kansai |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-01-15 | 2027-01-15 (Fri) | 2028-01-15 (Sat) | Identical |
| 2024-02-29 | 2025-02-28 (Fri) | 2026-02-28 (Sat) | Identical (this table uses 28 Feb; confirm with the temple) |
This table (and the calculator) shows 28 February 2025 for a 29 February 2024 death, because 2025 has no 29 February. The family temple may choose another nearby day. The 49th day still lands on 16/17 April 2024 by adding days. Annual services follow the calendar date; the 49th day follows the start-day rule.
FAQ
How does Kanto counting define the 49th-day memorial?
Do annual memorials also shift by one day between Kanto and Kansai?
What if the 49th day falls on a weekday?
Dates use Kanto +48 from the date of death as day 1, and Kansai +47 treating the day before death as day 1. Annual memorials keep the same month-day (this page uses the last day of February when 29 February does not exist; the family temple may choose otherwise), matching the Memorial Service Date Calculator. Input never leaves the browser (2026-09-14).